President Obama on Tuesday rejected the Republican argument that he should say the U.S. is under attack from “radical Islamic” terrorists, but the GOP says the government will never be able to face the threat unless it can name the threat.
“What exactly would using this label accomplish? What exactly would it change?” Obama said. “Is there a military strategy that is served by this? The answer is, none of the above. Calling a threat by a different name does not make it go away.”
Just last week, House Republicans released a national security strategy that preemptively answered Obama’s questions. That document indicates that the right strategy would evolve in the U.S. after properly identifying the enemy.
“Leaders in Washington should also level with the American people by calling the threat what it is,” Republicans wrote. “You cannot defeat an enemy you refuse to define, so let’s state it plainly: We are at war with Islamist terrorists.
“They are not limited to a single group, but are an evolving network of militants leading a dangerous global movement,” it added. “These fanatics have perverted the Islamic faith into a hateful ideology, and they are dead set on undermining open societies and subjugating millions under their barbaric rule.”
The GOP paper said the U.S. must also “do what it takes to win” the war against the Islamic State.
“To win the war against these extremists, we must act like we are fighting a war,” it said. “Terrorists are not routine criminals. They are intent on undermining the very foundations of free countries and are quite clearly waging war against us.”
The GOP paper added that Obama has made a big mistake by continuing to release terrorist detainees, some of which are known to have returned to the battle against the U.S.
“[W]e should not be releasing our enemies back onto the battlefield in the middle of a war,” it said. “The current administration has been more focused on relocating and releasing hardened terrorists than on capturing new ones.”
“This is unconscionable, especially when they are going back to the fight and killing U.S. citizens,” it added.
After Obama spoke, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce, R-Calif., said Obama’s remarks Tuesday show he still has no plan in place.
“President Obama still doesn’t have a plan to defeat ISIS,” he said. “The White House’s inaction and ineptness allowed these radical Islamist terrorists to spread across Syria, Iraq and Libya.”
Today, ISIS continues to control huge swaths of land, and they are using these safe havens to inspire and plot more attacks against the United States,” he added.
